I've been reminded often that that phenomenon may not be so common for others by the numerous inquiries as to why it would even cross my mind to go to Mongolia. Whereas I can't understand why anyone wouldn't want to go there.
I wanted to see what life was like for nomadic herders, especially at the end of a long winter when conditions were the toughest on both humans and animals. So I found a home stay opportunity, packed my warmest gear and hoped that I could hack it.
Mongolia is a harsh country. Ulaanbaatar is a faster paced city than I expected. People are assertive and in lot of cases, aggressive. More than a few times, did I have professionally dressed men and women shove into and past me, trying to get through a doorway.
Minimal personal space observed. Obvious Russian influence but a lot less resentful or spiteful in tone. No easy smiles, at least at the beginning. Dry cold, so didn't hit me as hard as I was expecting. Was still in the -30s C though.
Young kids and middle age adults wrestle with each other in public. People are built genetically very sturdy and are quite physical there. Got hit in the shoulder by a man play fighting with another. He was very apologetic and I could only look at him in disbelief. Some much there was foreign to me.
A lot of the apartment buildings in the city felt crumbly, sad and run down. No real beauty in their design. And inside, lighting is minimal and to be honest, scary feeling and the often sole light bulb would be on a timer and would turn off before the elevator arrived.
On weekends, happy kids play in the public playgrounds like kids do, with much laughter and joy.
It would have been very helpful had I learned some Cyrillic in advance. Just didn't get around to it. The language barrier was immense and awkward. When my driver dropped me off, the weight of what I had signed up for really hit me.
Fortunately for me, once my hosts realized that I had a language sheet with basic phrases and was interested in trying to communicate, they gave me a phrase book which I used, providing much comic relief, to ask questions and tell them a little about myself.
It made meal times more comfortable as sitting completely silent with them for 3 meals a day would have been quite awkward, had it continued for the duration. I had the choice to eat in my ger but that felt too much like being served and didn't want that. Incidentally, I loved Mongolian cuisine, way more than Nepali.
Life as a nomadic herder is repetitive with consistent long days. I kept their hours which was from 5:40 am - 7 pm. And despite them both being in their 60s, neither of them have taken more than 2 days off in a row ever. They care for their animals too much to leave any longer. Work is ongoing, with little physical comfort.
We sat on small stools without backs. Meals were made from scratch. Water had to be gathered. No running water. My ger was dimly lit by one light bulb, powered by a car battery.
My tiny battery powered lantern was the source of great curiosity as the amount of light that came from it surprised everyone. There would have been no way I could read or write otherwise.
They practiced a seemingly never ending rotation system as the ground barely had any growth or animals to eat. Cows and horses were led hundreds of meters up hills where the sun exposed some low growing vegetation.
I came expecting to see weakened and thin animals and thought it would be a sad sight. But the opposite was true. I have never seen such strong and muscular animals. Had to walk through about 30 of them to get to the outhouse as they were all intermixed. Very intimidating at the start.
If this was the toughest time of year for them, I can't imagine how they would be in the height of the summer. The horses and cows were all so beautiful and calm. Even the sheep and goats were muscular and sturdy.
Work outside is tough. First the temperatures. They will hit -50s C in the height of the winter. And heating is with wood during the day from the kitchen. You cook with the same stove. Slept on a minimally padded wooden bed -- Back felt like it was going to break in half part way through the first night. At night, one pail of coal will keep burning for 12 hours.
It didn't even take one night in a ger to understand the importance of that. I still had to sleep with a -18 C rated sleeping bag, hat, gloves, ski pants, down jacket and sleeping pad. Without the added heat and my gear, it would have been miserable.
I'm still amazed (smell aside) how well the coal worked and the important a role it plays, and will continue to play, despite my original environmental ideals. Now I understand why it is used to fuel steam engines, giant power plants.
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